Theme recordings don’t always work, simply because the gimmick of the theme doesn’t always produce music of outstanding quality, but in this disc pianist Lewin seems to have been inspired by the learning of new pieces and thoroughly enjoyed making the disc. I, for one, also enjoyed listening to it.

A large part of the reason for my enjoyment was the fact that despite this “ghosts and goblins” theme, most of the music is really of a high quality. Little if any of it seems to have been written for effect, but merely to explore unusual melodic or harmonic structure by channeling ghostly titles. A quick glance at the list of composers immediately shows several whose reputations as good composers are undisputable—Niemann, Grieg, Medtner, Dvo?ák, Schubert, and Schumann—yet even the music of such composers as Sergei Lyapunov, Carl Tausig, Eugene Goossens, and Ferdinand Hiller are played here with consummate skill and high artistic commitment. Lewin, who won top honors in the Franz Liszt International Piano Competition and the William Kapell International Competition, is evidently an artist committed to excellence in phrasing and interpretation. Not for him the easy route of empty virtuosity: Lewin brings a fine sense of direction and continuity to everything he plays, and the result is a fascinating recital devoid of music one has heard time and time again.

Indeed, eight of the pieces on this disc (those by Troyer, Kaski, Farjeon, Price, Bainton, Hiller, Rivé-King, and Schubert) are world premiere recordings, and I was particularly delighted to see a piece on this disc by Florence Price, whose Piano Concerto I prize so highly. By giving just as much attention and energy to the music of lesser-known composers, Lewin elevates their music so that it sounds indistinguishable from that of the acknowledged masters. In fact, the “lightest”-sounding work on this program was actually Dvo?ák’s Goblin’s Dance, a nice piece but by no means a great one, and even here Lewin does his level best to raise its quality. (Oddly enough, Goossens’s A Ghost Story was a better piece than Dvo?ák’s!)

Harry Farjeon’s Some Goblins and Gnomes and Things turned out to be an excellent piece, as was Price’s The Goblin and the Mosquito. Hiller’s Dance of the Phantoms is merely an enjoyable little romp, but how Lewin plays it! A real surprise, to me, was the piece by Julie Rivé-King, a native Cincinnatian who studied with Liszt and performed with Carl Reinecke. It is another charming piece, but not as insubstantial as one might imagine in advance of hearing it.

Lewin wraps up his program with Schumann’s Ghost Variations, a work completely unknown to me, written in 1854 when the then-schizophrenic composer had a dream that ghosts and angels dictated this theme to him. His wife Clara was apparently upset by the music’s “other-worldly origins” and refused to allow it to be published; thus it did not appear until 1939. As Lewin points out in the notes, the music is “fragile, gentle and intimate, painfully private,” but really and truly, not “ghostlike” at all. Thus we come to the end of this fascinating and original compilation of offbeat piano pieces. Bravo, Michael Lewin!

Customer Reviews

Average Customer Review: ( 1 Customer Review )

Fabulous and Creative RecordingAugust 7, 2013By J. Baxter See All My Reviews"This is an immensely creative recording, with top-of-the-line playing, in demonstration sound. Michael Lewin has followed up If I Were a Bird with another fascinating themed recording, again a mix of familiar and unfamiliar recordings and repertoire, this time featuring music of phantoms, ghosts and goblins. As a life-long pianophile, I was amazed at how many musical discoveries are on this disc, with 8 world premieres amongst the 18 compositions. The tragically unknown Schumann Ghost Variations are ineffably tender and touching. On every level it is a superior performance to Andras Schiff, who is analytical and cold, in brittle recorded sound. The virtuoso works by Lyapunov and Tausig are staggering. Lewin's well-known Lisztian credentials stand him in good stead with these frighteningly difficult works. The various goblin pieces show spectacular fingerwork, wit and lightness. The Bolcom Graceful Ghost Rag swings and lilts. Among the many unfamiliar pieces, I particularly enjoyed the Carlos Troyer Ghost Dance of the Zuni's, with its compelling Native American rhythms and atmosphere. Lewin has also supplied fabulous and extensive program notes. Sono Luminus has provided remarkable sound and a very handsome booklet. A must for lovers of great piano playing!"Report Abuse

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